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The six state that EU competitiveness has seriously deteriorated. This would be the direct result of Brussels decisions taken during Commissioner Frans Timmermans ‘reign’ on the basis of ideology rather than facts’.

Six EU countries demand revision of climate policy: ‘Ideological dogmatism harms our industry’

Six European heads of government have called on Commission President Ursula von der Leyen to review the current EU climate policy.

The eagerness of the German tandem Commission President Von der Leyen and Chancellor Merz to seize the in Belgium located Russian assets removes crucial brakes. But Moscow has sent harsh warnings to Belgium about the Russian assets.

German tandem Von der Leyen and Merz prey on Russian assets in Belgium

By: N. Peter Kramer | Wednesday, December 10, 2025

To say that the pressure on the Belgian Prime Minister is immense is the understatement of the year.

The main change by the member states of the deforestation directive is the introduction of a simplification clause.

Member states and EP demand pause on radical green rules

By: N. Peter Kramer | Wednesday, December 3, 2025

Something is finally moving, after decades of more and more regulation. A first simplification package was approved in the European Parliament.

Would the EU insist that ending fossil fuels was mentioned in the final declaration or back down to save the COP30? Eventually the Union agreed with a text without ‘fossil fuels’ and with the threefold increase of the financial climate support for the poor countries : annually 300 billion dollar.

UN climate summit leaves fossil fuels out of the picture

By: N. Peter Kramer | Wednesday, November 26, 2025

It was supposed to be a historic UN climate summit in the Brazilian Amazon city of Belém, thirty years after the first and ten years after the successful Paris summit, a new step in limiting greenhouse gas emissions would be taken.

The only ones who still stubbornly cling to the illusory one and a half degrees are the political and administrative elites who have made a case for the associated policies, the activist climate movement and a few stray activist climate scientists here and there

Guterres: the one and a half Celsius is dead

By: N. Peter Kramer | Wednesday, November 12, 2025

On the eve of the UN climate conference COP30 in Brazil, the word was finally out.

Within the European Council, a fierce political battle is raging to use the blocked billions to support Ukraine, at least that part (140 billon euros) that consists of Russian government bonds.

Russia and China warn the EU about Euroclear billions

By: N. Peter Kramer | Wednesday, November 5, 2025

Russian Prime Minister Mikhail Mishustin went on a working visit to Cina. After a meeting with his Chinese colleague Li Qiang in the city of Hangzhou, an extensive press release was published yesterday.

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Less regulation, less reporting on sustainability, more realism, more flexibility, and pragmatism are the new marching orders for the European Commission.

EU leaders slow down Green Deal to save industry and business competitiveness

By: N. Peter Kramer | Monday, October 27, 2025

The relation between industry and business competitiveness on the one hand and the green transition on the other was one of the key issues at the Summit last week.

The EU leaders want to do the job ‘in-house’, under the umbrella of the Council. This looks like they don’t trust the Commission for it.

EP rejects an ‘unbalanced, excessive’ law, part of the Green Deal. A new trend?

By: N. Peter Kramer | Wednesday, October 22, 2025

As expected, another part of Timmermans’ Green Deal, the Forest Monitoring Regulation, has been rejected by the EP, by 370 votes to 264.

The problem is significant. Only twenty percent of rejected asylum seekers actually leave the EU

EU wrangling to get rid of illegal immigrants

By: N. Peter Kramer | Wednesday, October 15, 2025

‘Last year, there were almost one million illegal immigrants in the EU. They are using our public funds. It is completely unacceptable’. Brave words of the Danish Migration Minister Rasmus Stockland

The decision on how to proceed now rests with Macron, who must surely be asking himself how long this political charade can be allowed to go on. He has three options: He can appoint another prime minister. He can once again dissolve the General Assembly. Or he can resign himself.

3rd French Prime Minister in 13 months resigned after 26 days

By: N. Peter Kramer | Tuesday, October 7, 2025

French politics has been highly unstable since July 2024, when President Emmanuel Macron called for snap parliamentary elections in a bid to achieve a clear majority following a bruising loss for his party in the European Parliament vote

German Chancellor Friedrich Mertz, France President Emmanuel Macron and many other national leaders rallied behind the peace plan. Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni called the international aid flotilla on his way to Gaza led by the former climate activist Gretha Thunberg to immediately cease its action. ‘Many would be only too happy to disrupt US President Trumps’s peace plan’, Meloni said.

EU Council dilemma: What to do with the Commission’s Israel sanction package?

By: N. Peter Kramer | Wednesday, October 1, 2025

What to decide about the Commission’s sanction package against Israel

‘Today’s vote marks the clear end of the Timmermans era and its forest monitoring law’, stated MEP Stefan Köhler (EPP) in the European Parliament’s Committee for Environment

Exit ‘Monitoring Framework for Resilient European Forests’ : the end of the Timmermans era?

By: N. Peter Kramer | Wednesday, September 24, 2025

‘Today’s vote marks the clear end of the Timmermans era and its forest monitoring law’, stated MEP Stefan Köhler (EPP) in the European Parliament’s Committee for Environment

The EU is still so dependent on Chinese raw materials that it cannot take a stand against China’s dumping on the EU market. This dependence also prevents the EU from going against China’s support for Russia in the war in Ukraine. Result, China’s trade surplus with the European Union has increased by almost 20 percent since December last year.

One year after the Draghi report: China’s trade surplus increased by almost 20 percent

By: N. Peter Kramer | Wednesday, September 17, 2025

At the presentation of his 400-page report in September 2024, Mario Draghi said, the EU will face a ‘slow death’ if it doesn’t quickly close the gap with economic superpowers such as the United States and China

On the far right, Marine Le Pen said the president was giving Macronism its last shot from his bunker, along with his little circle of loyalists’. Jean-Luc Mélanchon, leader of the united (radical) left including the PS, was unimpressed and complaining that nothing had changed and it was time for Macron’s departure from the presidency. Since the far right and the opposite (radical)left wing have together a clear majority in the Assemblée Générale, Sébastien Lecornu’s chance of success doesn’t look really promising.

A mission impossible for Sébastien Lecornu, Macron’s 5th Prime Minister?

By: N. Peter Kramer | Wednesday, September 10, 2025

President Emmanuel Macron has again named a close ally, Sébastien Lecornu, as the new French prime minister, 24 hours after a vote of confidence ousted François Bayrou.

China spent twice as much on its energy transition as it did on its defense (€274billion). Defense spending in the EU rose by 30 percent between 2021 and 2024. Despite this, the EU is apparently unable to defend itself without US help. While Russia spent ‘only’ €130 billion on its war economy and a negligible amount on the energy discussion.

Does China care more for the world than the West?

By: N. Peter Kramer | Wednesday, September 3, 2025

Under the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change, it has been agreed that wealthy and developing countries have a common but distinct responsibility for climate change

Billions in funding must be created, massive loans must be taken out, new taxes will be introduced, if VDL and her obedient commissioners have their way. The proposal includes an EU tobacco tax for smokers and a corporate tax for companies with a turnover of more than €50 million. This way, in its ‘hunger’ for own money, the commission wants to raise direct taxes for ‘Brussels’ directly, which affects the sovereignty of the member states. Countries decide for themselves how to tax certain matters.

Von der Leyen wants an astronomical EU budget of 2 trillion euros

By: N. Peter Kramer | Monday, July 21, 2025

The European Commission led by its president, Ursula von der Leyen, has once again shown its complete indifference to the economic situation in the EU member states

Bayrou runs the risk of having his budget for next year voted down in the parliament (the Assemblée Generale), which will cause the collapse of his minority government. The embattled centrist prime minister has only been in the job since December, following on the short-lived premiership of Michel Barnier.

PM Francois Bayrou’s ‘moment de verite’

By: N. Peter Kramer | Wednesday, July 16, 2025

France’s Prime Minister François Bayrou has proposed cutting two public holidays as part of a 2026 budget proposal to slash overall spending

There is a good chance that her party will win the elections again next year and that she can succeed herself as prime minister. There are not many social democratic politicians who can say that today.

Danish social democratic prime minister Mette Frederiksen sometimes tougher on migration than Giorgia Meloni

By: N. Peter Kramer | Wednesday, July 9, 2025

With her country holding the rotating EU presidency the second half of 2025, Danish prime minister Mette Frederiksen is advocating a stronger EU with more defence and less migration

The Brazilian government pointed out that developing countries have the right to develop their fossil reserves. And US President Trump wants more oil and gas pumped up

Extreme weather or not, the climate summit in Belem is in danger

By: N. Peter Kramer | Wednesday, July 2, 2025

That the weather is becoming more and more extreme does not lead to more political urgency

Wölken continues with allegations as ‘Ursula von der Leyen as Commission chief is betraying her mandate and turning the Commission into the EPP’s headquarters. An institutional scandal’.

Socialists & Democrats furious: ‘Commission’s withdrawal of the Green Claims Directive is political sabotage’

By: N. Peter Kramer | Wednesday, June 25, 2025

‘Commission-EPP alliance hijacks EU decision-making process’ argues the S&D Group after the EU Council decided to cancel the final trilogue about the Green Claims Directive when the Commission let know to intend to withdraw the directive

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EU Actually

Six EU countries demand revision of climate policy: ‘Ideological dogmatism harms our industry’

N. Peter KramerBy: N. Peter Kramer

Six European heads of government have called on Commission President Ursula von der Leyen to review the current EU climate policy.

Europe

Trump’s Peace Lessons for Europe

Trump’s Peace Lessons for Europe

U.S. President Donald Trump’s claims to have ended eight wars may be debatable, but his peace efforts raise valid questions. Europe can learn lessons from Washington on how to break the deadlock in protracted conflicts.

Business

US presses Europe on rules for big tech companies

US presses Europe on rules for big tech companies

Europe should "reconsider" its rules for big tech companies if it wants to see lower US tariff rates on its steel and aluminium exports, US Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick has said.

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